I am writing this concerning the cutoff and lack of replacements for the three very important NPCs that are lost when a player reaches rank 2200+. There really needs to be something to replace the T.O. Troop Carriers, Blade Harvesters, and Dark Arms Carriers for high ranking players.

The dedication and enjoyment I have for Galaxy Legion is extremely high, but since breaking the 2.2k rank mark I have started to get more and more frustrated. NPCing for the Q-Pedd seasonal feels more and more pointless since it feels like an endless sea of Flamehawks, Chargers, Assassins, and Data Collectors. While I am glad the Fabrication Plants and Silthion Queens have been amended, and the new NPC Elites for higher ranks have been added, the fact is that it feels like I lost a major portion of the game. Gaining a terraformer, a planet flux, or, on those extremely rare instances, a quasi-spacial expander, would make any amount of NPCing worth it. Now there is not a lot to look forward to.

Since I am now impacted by the cutoff, I do not feel this is something that should go under 'Suggestions and Ideas', but falls under the heading of 'Issues and Support', as it is now negatively affecting gameplay and either requires a solution or a firm 'tough noogies'. I look forward to hearing a reply, as I believe several others do.

I was really hoping this would be fixed along with the addition of all these new elites.
It is currently a serious concern for those of us who want to level up bases but not at the expense of losing all troop carriers.

+1 This is an issue .. By this time in the game there are no more missions to do .. and the only way to improve your ship and get enjoyment out of the game is by improving planets.. Not having any mechanism to get these drops removes a giant portion of the gameplayability..

I support Nam, especially when he has good ideas and this is one!

Including a stryll seeker-dropping mob (do I really have to add this to every related thread??)

I've been very deliberately slow ranking because I know that the game basically ends at level 2200. The main game mechanic that I enjoy is building project planets, and losing troop carriers would most likely see me quit. Because of this, I'm reluctant to do things like contribute to bases, because I know it cuts short the time until the game is no fun.

Honestly, I suspect this is deliberate on Dan's part - there's basically no content past a certain level, and the looming spectre of no TO Carriers keeps more folks from leveling up.

Personally I think that something like a level cap would make a heck of a lot more sense than punishing people for playing the game well. Make it something high (like 4,000) and adjust it up as needed. That way people can't level themselves away from all the content (and pvp) of the game. Like any game, some people would immediately bolt for the cap, but most wouldn't. Hitting the cap would still have downsides (maxing out planet numbers), but it wouldn't affect a ship's power all that much - most rank points come from AP rather than level anyway. And of course, auto-ranking to cap in like a day would still leave you with the Shanebetten tinfoil ship problem. In any case, it would be a much less punitive measure to keep high-rankers from developing outside of the game's planned content.

Regardless of that though, losing troop carriers at *any* level sucks. They're the variable reinforcement that keeps you NPCing. They're *the* thing you look for, they're the payout of the slot machine that makes all the other time you put in worthwhile. Having them stop appearing is *nuts*.

And do *not* replace them with something *even rarer!!!* The rarity for them is just fine - they're hard to find but not impossible. If they spawned as rarely as Kelethors, building a project planet would take so long that it wouldn't be fun, and it would be hard to think of it as an active project. That's the whole thing that makes projects fun - they're *ongoing.* The rarity of the drop can't go so high that 'ongoing' slows to 'once every couple weeks.' That's so slow that someone will lose interest and forget about it.

Bottom line, don't punish people for doing well - one of the things that's constantly baffled me in this game is its weird punitiveness - I was *sad* when I hit level 600 because of all the NPC's I lost, and put it off for as long as possible. In every other game in the freakin' universe, leveling up is a happy occasion. And in many, hitting the level cap is better yet - 'Welcome to the *real* game now, son!' GL basically glares at you and kicks you in the junk for leveling, and losing TO Carriers is the worst example of it.

Hoe cares, Just quit the game!

Not to be impatient but it would be nice to hear WebguyDan sound-off on the issue.

Would eliminate the potential for trolling and additional rants.

Nam's Log, Stardate 02.07.2013:
*in best Kirk voice*
It IS... day 3... of my... wait for a response from... the creator of... this universe. There... are so many QUESTIONS... that I wish answered. My... initial communications have been... soundly ignored. I... HOPE... that it gets through... and a dialogue can be gained.

It's.... GOT TO, mister!

Picard's cooler

Still nothing?

Exactly how many npc's do you have past level 2200 ?

Its not about what you "have", but what is lost at that rank.

You lose the 3 NPC's that necessitate how this game plays at high ranks.

You lose the ability to make your own 15/16x toxic mining worlds > No one at that rank is going to "want" to pay the 100bil+ costs to invade a massive 18x irradiated.

But lets say they wanted to invade that massive 18x, they would obviously want to flux it(as your not spending 100bil+ and taking that chance he won't tap tap tap preventing a temp flux), but wait, you lose Dark Arms Carriers at 2200 so no more bio-vaps or planet flux's.

Plus you lose the major factor of this game, the ability to make artifact worlds. Yes theres taltherian ability, but that's a 1 month wait to take a planet from rich - 15x.

Nearly a week and still no reply.

You shouldn't have leveled past where Dan ran out of ideas. This *your* fault!

I never mocked or ignored. I made my statements in the Suggestions area well before this. So, this is why I am asking for a definitive answer on the valuable NPCs. Will they be rank cap increased, will they be replaced, or will they stay gone without an alternate.

Honestly I feel this is a fair request to ask as it does affect my gameplay. I'm just disappointed that there has been no response. Heck, I'd even appreciate a 'We're working on a making a decision.' I understand the importance of gameplay balance and such. Kneejerk reactions can have incredible impact on the game world.

well, you got where you are and asked about kind of late, you know that, right?

I think, now you can only work on personal goals in game and wait for Legion missions/contests.
Or make account restart btw.

Anyway, all players should understand, how limited is the developer group for GL and that they can not fly thru the game content and then be surprised. I like, what you achieved... but well, you can not expect miracles.

Btw. did you try to contanct Dan directly? I doubt, that he every week check all posts...

I disagree. Saying that is it too late to get an answer or fix a problem doesn't help anyone. Heck, I realize and accept that I got myself into this situation, but I'm not going to blame myself. I'm going to seek a nice proactive solution. And to begin that I want to give Dan a chance to open the lines of communication. Let him know I'm willing to listen to any suggestions that he might have about the issue. Even if it is to explain why we are out of luck.

And while Dan might not check Issue forum posts every week, I plan on keeping the topic on top until I can get a response. I really think it can be resolved in good way.

I'm sickeningly optimistic.